Gurgaon’s own Metro

In the next 30 months, Gurgaon will roll out its own Metro trains that would run through its residential areas.

The Haryana Government has decided to award the Rs 900-crore-contract of setting up the National Capital Region's first privately-operated metro train project to the consortium company of DLF and Infrastructure Leasing Financial Services (IL&FS).

A decision was taken in the Cabinet meeting headed by Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda in Chandigarh on Monday evening.

The project has been subjected to many changes to make it a people's train.

As against an earlier plan to take it through the IT hub DLF Cybercity, the train's route has now been realigned and will run through the residential pockets of DLF City as well a proposed special economic zone.

It would also touch upon Udyog Vihar, the industrial hub near Expressway, and benefit thousands of workers who commute to the place everyday.

The service will be called the Gurgaon Metro Rail Link (GMRL). The consortium company of IL&FS group and DLF were the sole bidders for this project.

A senior government official said it would be extended from the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation's Gurgaon Metro line between Mehrauli and Sikanderpur stations.

“Earlier the company had plans to lay the Metro on special third rail tracks with rubber wheels that is prevalent in some European countries,” said the official.

The plan was changed keeping in mind the fact that all extensions of the DMRC's lines such as the IAI Express and the one between Mundka and Badarpur would be on standard gauge.

The train would be fitted with Automatic Train Operation (ATO) system that does not require a human driver to run it. The GMRL trains will have three coaches and a passenger carrying capacity of 300.